FPA staff recognised at awards

News about TFFPN awards - Congratulations to both Amy and Peter!​​

The Forest Practices Authority's Dr Amy Koch won the Excellence in Environmental Management and Practices Award at the TFFPN​ gala awards night on Friday 15 September 2023. Amy was recognised for her work on climate change impacts on Tasmanian forests.

Amy used her unique role as FPA's Biodiversity Research Manager to bring together researchers and forest practitioners to understand what climate changes and challenges we might expect. The project then investigated how the Tasmanian forest practices system could adapt to better manage our forests under a changing climate.

Amy's award was accepted by Pam Allan, FPA Chair, who delivered Amy's message:

• The impacts of climate change are already being noticed within Tasmanian forests, so we need to be on the 'front foot' in how we mitigate or respond to these impacts.
• This project is seeking to address this emerging issue but is just the starting point. We as an industry need to adapt, and more research is needed to help inform how we should adapt.
• The researchers who contributed to this project are an enormous knowledge resource which we as an industry can tap into.

Dr Peter McIntosh, the FPA’s Earth Sciences and Cultural Heritage Manager, was a finalist for the Outstanding Contribution to the Tasmanian Timber Industry award. Since joining the FPA in 1999, Peter has provided training and advice to foresters and conducted research on the issues and risks involved in forest operations. He has contributed to two revisions of the Forest Practices Code, with the findings from his research and monitoring and his editing skills playing a major role.​

Peter was congratulated by many colleagues at the awards, a measure of the valuable contributions he has made to the forest practices system over the last 24 years and the respect in which he is held.

Congratulations to both Amy and Peter!​​